Little Twin
by mycookiegirl
Summary: Everybody knew that Curly and Tim were very alike. They looked like each other, and thought like each other. One-shot. Could be triggering


**Little Twin**

**I do not own The Outsiders. S.E. Hinton does :)**

"Aww, he looks just like Tim when he was a baby." Margaret Shepard whispered to her husband, cradling her new-born baby in her arms.

Her husband, Thomas, smiled at her and stroked the new baby's hair. Thomas loved his first child, Tim, so he suggested to Margaret that when they were ready, they would have another.

"What should we call him?" Margaret asked weakly. She was feeling exhausted after having just given birth to her second child, and she just wanted to rest. However, she couldn't sleep knowing that her baby didn't even have a name.

"Why don't you name him after your father, since Tim was named after mine?" Thomas suggested, taking his baby out of Margaret's arms and kissing him on the head.

"Well, I want something a little different. I don't really like the sound of Charles; it sounds too formal. But then, I don't really like the sound of Charlie." Margaret replied, looking at the baby.

Thomas frowned; he really had no idea on any name suggestions. Margaret and Thomas both made a pact to not name their children after themselves, but now, coming up with new names was quite difficult.

They didn't have boys' names picked out because they were told that Margaret would be giving birth to a girl. When the boy was born, it was a shock to both parents, but that didn't mean that they didn't love their new baby any less.

"Well, if he grows up to be like Tim-" Thomas started, but was interrupted by his wife snapping her fingers.

"That's it! Curly!" Margaret exclaimed, a big grin spreading over her face.

"Hmm?" Thomas questioned, staring at his wife.

"If he grows up to be like Tim, he'll have the same curly hair as him! Don't you see? Curly will have curly hair!" Margaret laughed, gently taking her baby out of Thomas's arms.

She kissed her child on the nose, and slowly lay down and placed the baby on her chest.

"Are you sure, Marg? Don't you want anything a little more…normal?" Thomas asked, biting his lip.

Margaret shook her head and rubbed her baby's back since he was starting to cough.

"Nope; I think Curly's a great idea." Margaret claimed, but then looked up at her husband with wide eyes.

"You don't like it?" she sighed.

Thomas felt bad; his wife actually looked proud of herself for coming up with the name, and he'd just took the happiness away from her. Curly wasn't such a bad name anyway; he knew a kid a few blocks away with the name Sodapop, so Curly wasn't _that _bad.

"No; I love it!" Thomas smiled, kissing his wife on the cheek.

Margaret brushed away a few strands of dark straight hair and returned the smile. Then she looked down at Curly again.

"Only one more day, Curly. Then we can take you home." Margaret whispered, and lifted Curly up so he was facing her.

XXX

"Mom! Curly's chewing the door handle!" Three year old Tim Shepard yelled. Even at three years old, he was very aggressive.

Margaret sighed; when she and Thomas had brought Curly home from the hospital a few months back, Tim was beyond jealous. He had started having more tantrums and had even tried to hurt the baby on more than one occasion.

"It's okay, Tim; Curly's just teething." Margaret assured her oldest son, rocking back in her husband's rocking chair.

"But then it'll be all sticky and gross. And then you'll make me have a bath, and I hate baths!" Tim shouted, stomping his foot on the ground.

Curly, who didn't know what was going on, didn't like the loud noise that the floor made when Tim had stomped on it.

He started to cry, so his mother stood up from the chair and walked over to her son and picked him up.

"Shh, it's okay." Margaret cooed, kissing Curly's head.

Curly immediately quietened down and snuggled into his mother's chest. His mom always made him feel better when he was upset or if Tim had hurt him.

Margaret frowned at Tim who had a worried expression on his face.

"Go to your room, Tim. I'm telling your father when he gets home." Margaret warned Tim, and started marching over to him.

Tim gasped and ran out of the room before his mother could get him; when she was angry…everyone was in trouble, except for Curly.

_Curly_.

Tim sighed and sat down on the floor in his bedroom; his parents never had time for him anymore. It was always about Curly. _His _little brother. It was all Curly's fault.

XXX

Curly had turned two a few hours ago, and Tim felt the need to get Curly a birthday present, or make one…with his imagination.

Tim had picked up a twig that he had found outside in his back garden. Tim didn't own a switchblade, and he hadn't ever owned one, but he thought it would be tuff to have one.

He knew there was no way that his parents would ever let him go near a switchblade, so Tim liked to pretend that the twigs in the garden were actually knives.

He practiced stabbing his victims day and night, well mainly the afternoon since that was when Shannon and Darrell Curtis came over to babysit. They brought over their three sons: Darry, Sodapop and Ponyboy. Ponyboy was the easiest target; since he was the smallest, but Sodapop saw what Tim was doing and _sacrificed _himself so that it was he that was getting stabbed by the twig and not his baby brother.

Tim thought it would be cool for Curly's first official present from him to be a switchblade; he wanted Curly to be just like him when he grew up; tough and arrogant. Margaret however, didn't see it this way.

"Tim, you're not giving Curly that; he might eat it." Margaret told Tim firmly, pointing a finger at her son when he walked inside with the twig in his hands.

"But mom, it's the thought that counts, right?" Tim asked, not letting go of the twig.

"Not if it's something dangerous! Get rid of it now!" Margaret ordered, standing up. Tim started backing out of the back door.

"Okay, okay, as you wish." Tim chuckled, and ran into the garden.

Tim didn't dispose of the twig however, and instead hid it in the back of his pants.

He crept back inside, and when he saw that his mother was busy talking to someone on the phone, he tiptoed through to the hall and casually walked into Curly's bedroom.

Curly had been put in his crib for a nap, but the toddler was not sleepy at all. He was wide awake, clutching his blanket with a scared expression on his face.

Tim laughed when he saw Curly's state; the kid was weaker than he thought.

"Hey, Curly…how are you doing?" Tim mocked, strolling over to Curly's crib.

Curly looked up at Tim with wide eyes; Tim _never _spoke to him.

"Since it's your birthday, would you like your present from me?" Tim asked, removing the twig from his pants.

Curly nodded, and his dark curls bounced up and down in unison.

Tim smiled and handed Curly the twig. Curly stopped clutching his blanket and grabbed the twig from his older brother.

Curly stared at the twig for a moment, and then looked up at his brother, confused.

"It's a switchblade, Curly. You stab people with it." Tim explained, taking out his own _switchblade _and poking Curly in his ribs.

Curly fell over, but pushed himself back up and picked up the twig again.

The two year old wasn't sure what Tim meant by stabbing; all's he could concentrate on was how hungry he felt.

Curly spat out his pacifier and stuck the twig in his mouth, and started chewing on the hard wood.

Tim's amused expression instantly turned into fear; he knew that twigs weren't edible.

"No Curly! Spit it out! You're not meant to eat it!" Tim screamed, forgetting that his mother was only down the hall.

The little toddler didn't take any notice, and bit into the twig again.

"MOM!" Tim shouted, and in an instant his mother was charging down the hall and barging into Curly's room with the phone still in her hand.

"Tim, why are you…oh my gosh!" Margaret screamed, and dropped the phone on the floor before rushing over to Curly.

Curly's mother hooked two fingers in Curly's mouth and tried to ease the twig out of her son's mouth, but Curly kept his mouth clamped shut.

Margaret was desperate; she didn't want her baby choking or cutting his gums, so as a last resort she pinched her son's nose lightly.

After a few seconds, Curly's mouth dropped open, and Margaret retrieved the broken up twig.

"Oh dear, are you okay, baby?" Margaret cried, picking up Curly who was now crying aswell.

Tim looked up guiltily at his baby brother; Curly could have seriously been hurt. Tim wanted to start crying aswell, but he knew that his mom would just shout at him even more.

Once Curly had calmed down, Margaret rubbed his back and stared down at Tim with anger clouding her brown eyes.

"This…is a whole new level. I can't believe you would do that, Tim." Margaret said quietly but dangerously. Tim gulped.

"I didn't think he'd-" Tim began, but his mother hushed him.

"Be quiet!" she snapped. "Your dad is going to be so angry when I tell him about what you've done. He'll be home in about ten minutes, so go wait in mine and your father's room." Margaret ordered, and Tim obeyed obediently.

Tim sat on the bed, waiting nervously for his dad to get home. He loved his dad more than anyone, but he knew that his father wouldn't hesitate in punishing Tim when he'd done something wrong. And Tim knew that he had screwed up big time.

When Tim heard his father's car pull up, the young boy felt sick. He wanted to run away, but he didn't want to be a coward. He had to face his problems like a grown-up, but now he wasn't sure he wanted to act like a grown-up anymore.

The oldest Shepard listened to his parents talking in the living room, and then he listened to the sounds coming from Curly's room. The toddler was asleep at last, and the only sounds that could be heard was Curly moving around in his crib.

Why did Tim even hate Curly in the first place? Yeah, he demanded more attention than Tim did, but it wasn't his fault; he was just a baby.

Tim was shook out of his thoughts when he heard footsteps approaching the bedroom door. Tim stiffened and tried not to cry but it was hard; his father was sure to be angry with him.

When Thomas opened the door, he found his oldest son sitting on his and his wife's bed. Tim had his knees drawn up to his chest and was shaking slightly.

Thomas sat down next to his son and turned to face him, but Tim wouldn't look at him.

"Tim, look at me." Thomas said softly, putting his finger under Tim's chin and lifting the boy's head up.

"Your mother told me that you were giving Curly a twig for his birthday when she told you not to. Then, you disobeyed her orders and went into your little brother's room and gave it to him. Am I right?" Thomas asked slowly.

Tim nodded; he couldn't lie. It'd probably just get worse otherwise.

"Now, I know that you wanted to give your little brother a present, but when me or your mother tell you not to do something, you don't do it. Your mom warned you that Curly might put the twig in his mouth, but you went ahead and did it anyway. Did you do it on purpose Tim?" Thomas questioned, folding his arms.

Tim immediately shook his head. He hadn't been intending to hurt Curly; he really just wanted to give him the twig/switchblade.

Thomas nodded and patted his son's head.

"Alright, I believe you. I suppose I have to punish you for this, however." Thomas sighed, and Tim paled.

"You're grounded for three days: only here and school, savvy?" his father said, and a small smile tugged at his lips.

Tim gasped; he was expecting a far worse punishment than that. Only three days? Why was his dad being so nice?

"Now, I want you to go into your little brother's room and apologize for what you did, okay?" Thomas said gently, standing up and lifting Tim off the bed.

Tim smiled and nodded. Thomas grinned and hugged his oldest boy; he felt that Tim thought that he and his wife didn't love him because they had been spending a lot of time with Curly lately. Once Tim's punishment was over, Thomas decided that he would take his boy out for ice-cream with his wife and get his mother or the Curtis's to babysit Curly.

Tim jumped out of his father's arms and wandered into Curly's room.

Curly wasn't yet awake, but he was starting to stir. Tim walked over to the crib and gently rubbed Curly's neck.

"Shh, go back to sleep, Curly." Tim muttered. Curly stopped tossing and turning, and slowly settled back down.

Tim smiled and bent down, and pressed his mouth to Curly's ear.

"I'm sorry for about what happened today, Curly. I promise it will never happen again. I also promise that I'll protect you forever; you're my little brother and nobody is allowed to get you." Tim swore, and looked out the window at the sun that was beginning to set.

XXX

"Why does mommy need another baby if she has us?" Curly asked Tim as he nibbled on a cookie. Tim sighed; Curly had been talking non-stop since they had arrived at their grandmother's house the night before.

"I don't know. Why did she need you if she already had me?" Tim shot back, picking up a slice of bread and biting into it. Their grandmother had set out all different food to try and keep the children happy so that they didn't have to disturb her while she read her collection of fairy-tale books.

"Because…I don't know." Curly muttered, nibbling his cookie again. "Just, what if mommy and daddy forget about me?"

Tim sighed; he knew he had felt exactly the same when Curly was being born.

"Mom and dad will never ever forget about you; they love you. The new baby will need a lot more attention though. It will need feeding and changing. The only thing you need help with is getting your clothes on, but I can help you with that." Tim explained, ruffling Curly's hair. Curly smiled.

"So does this mean I don't have to have baths anymore?" Curly asked hopefully. Tim chuckled and ruffled Curly's hair again.

"If there's one thing mom and dad always remember, it's definitely bath time." Tim grinned. Curly sighed.

Suddenly, the phone started ringing and Tim and Curly listened to the sound of their grandmother getting up from the sofa and grumbling.

When she picked the phone up, Tim and Curly heard her squeal with delight.

"What's made grandma so happy?" Curly asked loudly.

"Shh!" Tim hushed, covering Curly's mouth with his hand.

"Oh, that's wonderful! Yes, I'll bring them over now!" Tim and Curly heard their grandmother beam, and it wasn't long before the massive lump with feet and a man's hairstyle barged into the room.

"Boys, your mom's had the baby! Let's go, quickly!" she exclaimed, and rushed outside to the car.

Tim stood up and lifted his younger brother into his arms; Curly was turning three in two months, but he still couldn't walk properly even though he could speak English fluently.

When the trio arrived at the hospital, Tim and Curly's grandmother grabbed both of their hands and rushed into the hospital. She asked what room Margaret Shepard was in, and then dragged her grandsons through the hallways until she eventually found Margaret's room in the maternity ward.

Margaret was sitting in the white bed, holding a bundle in her arms.

Tim and Curly both edged closer to the bed, until eventually they were standing next to their mother. Thomas laughed at both his son's enthusiasm.

"Boys, would you like to meet your new baby sister?" Margaret asked quietly. Tim and Curly both nodded, Tim had a smile on his face while Curly had a frown on his.

Margaret turned the baby round and gently moved the cotton blanket out of the baby's face. Both boys looked down at their new baby sister.

"Why does it look all funny?" Curly asked, staring at his mother.

"What do you mean?" Margaret chuckled.

"It's face is all squished together. Did your tummy squash it?" Curly questioned, scratching his head.

Margaret laughed and tapped Curly on his nose.

"Nope; all babies look a little weird when they're born. Then, after a day, they look normal." Margaret tried to explain, lying down on the bed.

The baby started fussing in her arms so Margaret turned to Tim.

"Tim, since you're old enough, would you like to hold the baby?" Margaret offered, holding up the baby.

Tim nodded eagerly and gently lifted the baby out of his mother's arms. The baby stopped fussing immediately, and opened her blue eyes.

Gasps were head from everyone in the room, except for Curly who was examining the baby's 'squished' nose.

"Wow Tim, you're really good with your little sister." Thomas praised, patting Tim on the back. Tim smiled back at his dad.

"I wanna hold the baby." Curly insisted, stretching his arms out.

"Sorry Curly, you're too little to hold the baby here. I promise when we get home tomorrow, you can hold the baby." Margaret promised, but Curly wanted to hold the baby right now!

"No! Wanna hold the baby now!" Curly screamed, and started crying. The baby started fussing in Tim's arms, so Tim rocked the baby slightly before handing her back over to their mother.

Tim crouched down to Curly's level and hugged him. Curly returned the hug and calmed down, but he was still angry with the rest of his family.

"Come on, Curls. You can hold the baby tomorrow." Thomas said, reaching out for his son, but Curly buried his face in his older brother's chest and kept his arms around his waist.

Thomas sighed and rubbed his temples while Margaret looked down at her baby girl.

Thomas's mother, Betty, asked her son and daughter-in-law:

"What are you going to name the baby?"

Thomas and Margaret looked up at Betty. They hadn't thought of a name for the baby because they were unsure of what the baby's gender was going to be.

"Well, we haven't really thought of a name yet." Margaret sighed. Thomas nodded.

"Angel!" Curly shouted. Everybody stared at Curly.

"What was that, Curly?" Thomas asked.

Curly looked up from Tim's chest and pushed himself out of his brother's loose grip.

"Angel - that could be the baby's name!" Curly giggled.

Everybody in the room looked at each other, unsure of what to say.

"Hmm, how bout callin' the baby Angela? It's like Angel, only with an 'a' on the end." Tim suggested.

Margaret and Thomas both smiled; Angela was the perfect name!

"Well done boys! That's a great name!" Margaret exclaimed, looking at Thomas who agreed.

"You mainly have Curly to thank for, mom and dad." Tim told his parents, and lifted up Curly and started tickling him. Curly giggled and grinned at his older brother.

"You were right Tim; they haven't forgotten about me." Curly whispered once Tim had stopped tickling him. Tim smiled into his little brother's curly locks.

"For a second, I thought you were gonna forget about me because you seemed happier with the baby. I'm glad you still like me too." Curly said quietly and softly.

Tim fixed his grip on his little brother before walking over to one of the blue chairs and placing Curly down on it, then sat down next to his little brother.

"I'd never forget about you, little bro; I'm gonna protect you forever." Tim whispered, but Curly was already asleep.

Tim sat back in the chair he was currently sitting on and smiled; he knew he loved the baby a lot, and he'd protect her too, but they would never be as close as what Tim and Curly were.

XXX

"Amen." Everybody in the church uttered at the same time.

The past two weeks for the Shepard family had been horrible; their father had gone missing one night, only to be found dead the next day in a car that had been driven into a tree.

The fuzz said that it was most probably an accident, but everybody who knew Thomas Shepard guessed that it was most probably a suicide car crash.

Thomas had been manically depressed for the past two years, and he had finally snapped. He died unafraid; Thomas wasn't afraid of anybody.

As Thomas's body was lowered into the ground, fifteen year old Tim Shepard narrowed his eyes.

"_How could you just leave us_?" Tim asked his deceased father in his mind.

The teenager was snapped out of his thoughts when he heard his little sister crying. He grabbed her arm and pulled her into his embrace, hoping that his comfort would help calm her down.

While Tim stroked Angela's hair, he noticed Curly just staring up at the sky looking at the clouds. Curly's face showed no emotion, however Tim knew that his little brother was hurting. He was too, but he didn't want to cry when he needed to be strong for his mother and siblings.

Tim's mother had broken down during the ceremony, and Angela was starting to have a break down as her father's body was being lowered. Tim and Curly however, had not cried at all during the ceremony or the burial.

Once everybody who had attended the funeral paid their respects, including the Curtis family, Margaret decided to head on home. Angela and Tim started to follow, but Tim stopped when he saw that Curly had not moved from his spot where he was looking up at the sky.

"You comin', Curls?" Tim asked, but Curly didn't respond.

Angela stopped aswell and waited for her brothers, but started getting bored.

"You guys comin' home or what?" she questioned. Tim turned to face her.

"Just head on home with mom; we'll be okay. Tell mom we'll be home soon." Tim told Angela, and turned back around.

Angela knew that Tim understood Curly more than anyone, so she followed her brother's orders and ran to catch up with their mother.

"Curly, are you okay?" Tim probed, but it was like he was talking to the air.

Then, without warning, Curly threw himself into his older brother's arms and started bawling.

Tim was shocked, but soon felt happy that Curly was showing his feelings. He was waiting for Curly to start crying, but he knew Curly wouldn't cry with people watching him. That's why Tim had told Angela to go home; Curly would never show his feelings to Angela.

Tim rubbed Curly's back as the younger boy sobbed. Curly was quite small for a twelve year old, so Tim could easily pick him up. Curly clutched Tim's white shirt which used to belong to his father; it went with the suit that he was wearing at the moment. Tim smelled faintly of his father, since they used the same cologne and both smoked cigars.

"D-dad's dead!" Curly cried into Tim's chest. Tim just nodded.

"I know, Curls. I know." He sighed, and rubbed his little brother's back again.

Tim continued to hold Curly and comfort him as the little boy cried. Tim realized that Curly was only a little boy who still needed his father; he hadn't even started high school yet!

Then Tim thought about Angela, who was even younger than Curly. Angela was barely ten years old, and she had always been a daddy's girl. What would she do without her dad there to watch her go through life?

When Curly's sobs subsided, Tim set Curly back on the ground. Curly wiped his eyes with the back of his jacket and looked up at Tim.

"You won't tell anyone I cried, right?" Curly begged. Tim smiled.

"Course not. Not if you don't want me to." Tim promised, and wrapped an arm around Curly. Curly gave his older brother a watery smile.

"Hey Tim, isn't the sunset so pretty?" Curly said as he and his brother walked home.

Tim looked at Curly, and then looked up at the sky.

"Yeah, it really is." Tim sighed.

"Ponyboy Curtis told me about them. He told me that they always calm him down. At first I thought he was crazy, but one day when I had detention and walked home from school, I looked up at the sky, and it was really beautiful." Curly told his brother.

"Huh. One day, I promise me and you will go and watch a sunset together; seeing as you like them so much." Tim declared, and Curly grinned.

"That'd be tuff." Curly exclaimed, and began bouncing up and down on the way home.

Tim looked up and sighed heavily; he was glad that his little brother wasn't upset anymore.

XXX

It had been three years since Eugene Adams had moved in with the Shepard family. It had been three years since Thomas Shepard had died in a car crash. It had been three years since Margaret Shepard had first started drinking alcohol as a habit. It had been three years since anybody had been happy.

Sure, the family stuck by each other and wouldn't let anybody who wasn't in the family hurt anyone in the family. But they would hurt each other, and that was worse.

The three siblings were not close to each other at all anymore. Tim and Curly constantly argued with each other while Angela was probably hanging out at some guy's house for a party or something.

Tim couldn't discipline Curly; Curly wouldn't listen to Tim and would say to his brother that Tim wasn't his dad. Tim had to agree that he wasn't Curly's dad; it was just the truth. But he didn't want his little brother growing up to be a hood – like Tim.

"I'll be what I'll be. Stop being a hypocrite." Curly would mutter, and then storm off to one of his friend's houses. Tim would then sigh and go to his room, or if Eugene was home he would go out to Buck's or maybe challenge Dallas Winston to a fist-fight.

Today, however, was different. Curly wasn't home at 11 pm, which was his curfew set by Eugene and Margaret. They didn't care if he was home on time though, Eugene would just crack open another can of beer while Margaret consumed a whole bottle of whiskey.

Tim wasn't worried, at least not until the clock chimed 1 am. He crept into the living room, and heard the TV softly buzzing while Margaret and Eugene were passed out on the couch. Tim sighed and picked up the empty bottles and cans that lay spread out on the coffee table and carpet, and then disposed of them in the trash.

The oldest Shepard considered going into Angela's room to ask his sister if she knew where Curly was, but then realized that she wouldn't know; Angela had been out at a party but had come home early because some boys had started a fight which had completely turned into chaos. The youngest Shepard escaped and ran home to 'safety', but decided to go to bed early when she saw Eugene and her mom drinking again.

"Curly…where are you?" Tim said to the wall as he repeatedly tapped his foot on the ground.

After another hour of tension, Tim couldn't wait any longer. The greaser crept out of the house and down the porch steps. The sky was very dark, so Tim made sure that he had his blade in his pocket.

A hand reached out to him and pulled him under the porch. Tim was about to scream, but the hand covered his mouth.

"What the hell?!" Tim shouted when he managed to get the hand off of his mouth. As Tim looked closer, he saw that the person who had grabbed him was Curly. "What in the world are you doing?"

"I can't do this anymore, Tim." Curly cried. Tim sat up and brushed the dust off his pants.

"Do what, Curly?" he asked, softer this time.

"I hate Eugene, and I hate what mom's become. She's not Margaret Shepard anymore; she's Margaret Adams. And I can't stand it! And me and you and Angela, we're all turning into Adams too! I wanna be a Shepard, Tim!" Curly sobbed, clutching his brother's arm.

Tim took Curly's words into consideration, and realized that his little brother was right. They were no longer the same family that they were three years ago; and it was breaking his little brother's heart.

Both of the oldest Shepard's had been arrested more than twice, and Tim was sure that Angela was doing stuff that thirteen year olds should not be doing. They all had bad reputations; whenever they would pass people on the street, people would start walking in the opposite direction of them, and occasionally they would hear people whispering about them. It was horrible; they were not the same family that they used to be – Eugene had changed them.

XXX

Curly Shepard was fed up. He was clearly not going anywhere in his life. Nothing even mattered to him anymore.

Margaret Shepard was murdered by Eugene Adams after a drunken argument between the couple. Eugene was sentenced to life without parole.

Angela had been married to Tim's friend after thinking that she was pregnant. She and her husband moved to Oklahoma City, to get away from her family.

And Tim, well…Curly didn't even know where his big brother was, and he expected to never see him again.

Curly stood up from his place in Buck's, and walked out, tossing his money on the table.

When Curly walked out into the sunlight, he saw a light blue mustang parked up outside of a small grocery store. The engine was still running, so Curly could easily jump in and steal it.

"_I wonder why a soc would leave his car engine on outside of a grocery store."_ Curly thought.

Without thinking, the nineteen year old greaser jumped in the car and started speeding away from the grocery store. He didn't even know where he was going; he just wanted to get away. From everything.

Curly slowed down as he started coming up to the DX where the Curtis brothers, along with Two-Bit Mathews and Steve Randle, were standing.

"Goodbye Curtis brothers! Goodbye Mathews! Goodbye Randle!" Curly shouted, and then he sped away.

Ponyboy, who was leaving for college in a week, looked at his brothers and friends.

"Was that Curly?" he asked. Everybody nodded with confused expressions plastered over their faces.

Curly drove through red lights and crashed into an old man's truck, but he didn't care; he didn't care about anything anymore.

Then as he drove down the road where the Shepard's, his family, used to live, a familiar face jumped in front of the car. It was Tim!

Curly immediately stepped on the break to avoid running over his brother.

"Curly, what are you doing?!" Tim shouted, opening the passenger door and climbing in next to Curly.

"I…uh…" Curly was unsure what to say.

"You're fed up too, huh?" Tim said softly, and Curly nodded.

"I'm sick of it too, little bro. I'm sorry I haven't been able to keep my promise; I was supposed to protect you, and instead I let Eugene turn you into another him, as he did with me. And I'm sorry for that." Tim apologized, rubbing the back of his neck.

Curly sighed; he remembered when his brother used to always promise him that he would always protect him, and Tim was right; he had broken his promise.

Tim looked at his little brother and raised his eyebrows.

"Are you still thinking about it now? You know, ending it?" Tim questioned, and Curly nodded honestly.

Tim smiled and patted his little brother's hand.

"Take me with you." Tim quietly begged, and Curly looked up at him. "I promise, when we get there, I won't let anything or anyone hurt you again. Mom and dad will be there, and they'll keep us safe too."

Curly felt tears slipping out of his eyes, but quickly brushed them away.

Curly was speeding down the highway as Tim clapped his hands and shouted:

"We're comin for you, mom and dad! We're comin home!"

And as Curly drove down the road where his father had died, the curly haired boy smiled and looked at his brother.

"You ready?" he asked his brother, and Tim nodded.

Curly drove faster than ever, and finally crashed into the tree that had killed his father.

Tim may not have been able to keep his promise to Curly about protecting him, but he had kept one promise:

He and his brother had watched a sunset together as the car crashed into the tree. And it was beautiful.

**AN: I think I'm having an adrenaline rush from writing that ending :o  
I like doing one-shots like this, but could any of you reviewers suggest stories I could write as chapter-stories. I am completely out of ideas!  
Please review; it would mean the world to me! :D**


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